Toy Industry Association's 2009 Specialty Toy of the Year

“Create Your Own Pop-Up Books was announced as the 2009 Specialty Toy of the Year by the Toy Industry Association on February 15th, 2009.” So, we couldn’t resist putting on our Cool Toy list. With this kit kids can make their own pop-up books. This product was designed by Creativity for Kids, a Faber-Castell Company. Included are a large number of decorative embellishments. Each hard-cover book has 12 pages (including the covers). One book measures 8-1/2" square and the other measures 6-1/4" square. There are 31 assorted die-cut pieces in various sizes, 2 sheets of stickers, 2 pair of wiggle eyes, 8 colorful markers and illustrated instructions and ideas. Also included are 5 different types of pop-ups that are provided with peel and stick edges. Check it out.

DON'T FORGET GEORGE

Is it President’s Day, Lincoln’s Birthday or Washington’s Birthday?

Well, Washington’s Birthday is February 22nd and Lincoln’s Birthday falls on February 12th. And with all the focus on Lincoln and President Obama’s fascination with the Lincoln Presidency it seems like it’s a celebration of Lincoln’s Birthday. The fact is in honor of both Presidents Washington and Lincoln, the third Monday of February is President’s day.

Since it is officially a national holiday here are a few things to do in the spirit of history. Check out the Huntington Library’s “The Last Full Measure of Devotion: Collecting Abraham Lincoln” which runs through April 27, 2009. The Library’s Lincoln collection is revered as one of the best in the country right up there with the Library of Congress and the Presidential Library of Illinois.

And Don’t Forget George, The Other President, visit the Mount Vernon website for a look back in history including Mount Vernon’s treasures.

And, the annual President’s Day Celebration at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley. Discover activities for the entire family from children’s discovery areas, arts and crafts, scavenger hunts, and presidential and first lady look-alikes. For the most part all of the activities are free, the food is not.

For more presidential facts and good reading, visit the PlaydatesInLa Store.

GO GREEN ADVENTURE

We were having a relaxing morning at home enjoying our oatmeal, scrambled eggs, coffee and orange juice. There were really no plans for the day. We just wanted to see how the day progressed. Spontaneity usually prevails for us as we are not the best planners. It occurred to us that this was the last day of the Go Green Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center and it was something that we wanted to check out. We have been working on The Green Room for awhile and we felt this might give us some fresh ides.

I was hoping it would be entertaining enough for our four-year old, if not we would move on to something else. After all, we have been exploring downtown enough to find something interesting to do. So, off we went. Now if we truly wanted to be “green” as the theme for the day, we would have parked the car at the local metro station and hoped onto the subway. Or, might have logged onto Rideamigos.com and hooked up with other convention goers for a ride-share. But like so many here in L.A. we are going to have to re-program ourselves to do things differently.

After piling into the mini SUV it was a surprisingly easy drive downtown on a Sunday afternoon. Parking was fairly easy. We entered the parking garage off Venice Blvd next to the South Hall and found a parking space within five minutes.

The Los Angeles Convention Center is always an adventure for us. We like going there because it has such a worldly feel. There is always a sense of excitement in the air with a buzz around whatever events are happening. You can feel it. Entering the South Hall from the parking garage you come down the escalator to a vast Lobby with a massive polished floor. The natural light spilling in brightens the open beams and gives you an appreciation of how huge the place is.

Once we purchased our tickets and obtained our “Green” wrist bands, we ventured into the convention. Not surprising it was abuzz with people moving from one exhibit to the next; each booth enthusiastically pedaling their eco-friendly wares. Now remember, spontaneity is our style and we never know what to expect. While the convention center is cool, you never know what the event will bring. As we walked into the event hall I was struck by the feeling of excitement that seemed to be present. For me the first few things I wanted to see were the latest in electric vehicle and solar panel technology. It was all there from toys to grass. You name it. But the first thing that caught our eye, especially our daughter, was The Earth Dome. It literally looked like a giant globe sitting on the convention floor. Walking inside the dome we discovered that there was a giant video screen and a stage set for a concert of some type. There were musical instruments, guitars and drums. The floor was lined with artificial turf that actually felt like grass. The furniture was obviously made from some sort of recycled material. Later we discovered the chairs, tables and easels were created by AoSA. The intention here to create things with no waste left over. All of the products are by products of each other.

As luck would have it we walked in minutes before an amazing show of musicianship was about to begin. It turned out to be a beautiful artistic show with cutting edge live music celebrating the beauty of the earth. The documentary film featured inside showed us the detrimental impact that plastic has had on the earth. The Earth Dome experience was unique and different; definitely the highlight of the day.

Of course we couldn’t leave without seeing as much as possible even though it was late in the afternoon. We walked the isles and lightly investigated the various vendors around the event. We did get to see the electric cars and solar panels eventually. It was especially fun seeing all of the eco-friendly kid stuff. From stuffed animals, organic cotton clothes, finger paints and games here is a list of some of the vendors providing environmentally friendly products for the kids.

Bamboohugs.com
Towels and linens made from bamboo.

Clamorhouse Kids
Stories and songs for a young century delivering positive, appropriate peace promoting messages for kids.

Dimpleskins Naturals
Pure organic skin care products for children

Eco-kids USA
Eco-Dough and Finger paint made from natural organic fruits and vegtables

For a complete list click here

EMERGING FAMILY CULTURE - DOWNTOWN L.A.

Our memory of downtown LA is of a place where skid row was the main attraction, empty buildings were common place and the environment was dreary and, frankly, dirty. The only things that ever lead us downtown were the lure of a great deal on jewelry or fashions. One of the best things to come out of the last ten years for Los Angeles is an emerging downtown neighborhood. Downtown has emerged as a place where families looking for more urban life can feel comfortable living. While the economic boom of this decade left us with turmoil in the real estate market and other aspects of the economy, it seems that a lasting downtown culture is emerging. Mostly conducive to single living or young couples, a family culture is emerging. In a post by David Kennedy entitled Life Downtown with Three Kids (blogdowntown.com) he describes a much different LA family lifestyle than one usually would expect from a typical LA family. We are so used to suburban living whether in a single family home, apartment or condo; most of our neighborhoods are not considered “walkable” by the standards of other big American cities. Where urban life provides all the comforts, conveniences and necessities we need without having to get into the car, most of the things we need are only be retrievable by getting in the car.That being said, I enjoy our suburban life and the Valley community we live in. There are no plans to move. But a trip to downtown Los Angeles once in a while is fun for experiencing the transformation that is taking place. We recently ventured downtown on a Saturday afternoon and had lunch at Philippe, one of the oldest and best known restaurants in Los Angeles. It is said that the Philippe is the home of the original French Dip sandwich. Here are some links to other downtown discoveries. Urth Cafe The Pantry Library Bar

NEXT TIME, HOORAY FOR HIPPOS

It turned out to be a bronchitis weekend. So the outdoor adventure for the weekend turned into an indoor adventure. What we had planned was this…..

Critters n’ Kids is a program offered through the Los Angeles Zoo’s educational program for children. Here’s why we are looking forward to the class. It offers the kids some age appropriate hands on activities, games, story telling and exploration of the zoo grounds. The class we wanted to attend was “A Hoot for Chimps”. We were looking forward to exploring the life and world of a Chimp, deciphering how they communicate and what they eat.

There is an eighteen dollar registration fee for members and permits the child and one parent to attend. Otherwise the fee is $23.00. Registration begins one month prior to the class date. The classes are offered during the week and Saturday starting February 11 (Wednesday), 12 (Thursday), 13 (Friday), and 14 (Saturday) For more info call 323-644-4211.

One of the great things about this program is there are classes for kids of all ages. The classes offered include: “Toddler Totes: A one hour class for children two years old with an adult, which focuses on animal adaptations and body parts, Critters 'N Kids: A 90-minute class for children three and four years old with an adult, which focuses on specific animals, Zoo Kapers: A 2 ½ hour class for children 5 to 6 years old with an adult, which focuses on world habitats and Zoo Explorers: A 2 ½ hour class for children 7 to 10 years old, which focuses on specific animal groups.”

This is definitely a great way to spend a few hours on a Saturday. We are looking forward to catching the next class, “Hooray for Hippos”. Maybe we will see you there. For now we are in for the weekend.

BRONCHITIS AND THE INAUGURAL

Our outward adventure to the LA Zoo this weekend was disrupted by a bout of bronchitis. We didn’t want to take any chances making things worse. Of course we didn’t know what it was at the time. With a bad cough and a 103 fever the night before, venturing out to the Zoo for the Critters N’ Kids classes would not have been fair to the other kids attending the class. We had been planning this event for a few weeks so when we decided to postpone it she was rightly disappointed, saying “I won’t cough on anyone I promise”. We didn’t think it was a good idea to venture out so we hunkered down inside and had a day of relaxation, right.

I’m not sure where she found all of her energy but I didn’t expect a sick child to want to play so much. It turned out to be a challenge keeping her entertained all day. Yes the television came into play, I’m guilty of that. We watched two movies, Toy Story and the Aristicats. Both are excellent films for entertainment value and highly recommended for a day at home. We also played outside riding scooters, walking, listening to the birds and playing with her favorite unicorns. The V-Tech computer game she got from her Uncle Denis for Christmas came in handy. Learning letters, numbers and shapes was great entertainment for about thirty minutes. Soon my favorite part of the day came, nap time. Normally it’s a fight to get her to take a nap. And she did put up a little resistance but she was not herself and finally gave into the comforts of a warm blanket and soft pillow on mom and dad’s bed.

Later in the afternoon just before diner we decided to look at the Inaugural Celebration coming up and it inspired us to break out our United States of America puzzle. This turned out to be a great opportunity to talk about our country and the historic event coming this week. By the way this puzzle is a sturdy wood puzzle with colored pieces that fit together nicely. This is the kind of puzzle I had growing up and I remember playing with it for many years. This puzzle gave us an opportunity to talk about our country, all the various states, what they are like and what government is. We talked about the world and the difference between the states and countries. While she is too young to really understand, we had fun with it.

GRIFFITH OBSERVATORY

We have heard so much about the renovated Griffith Park Observatory we decided to check it out. When the newly renovated facility was opened you needed reservations to get in, so we waited a few months before going. Since we had family visiting from out of town we put it on the list of things to do. The planetarium show was especially intriguing since this week was a period in the winter solstice when the moon appears the largest and brightest. My last visit to the observatory was as a child and I remember how exiting and fun it was. One very distinct memory is of the rooftop telescope, the view of Saturn. Pretty cool. Unfortunately the telescope was not working. But there were many other things to look at.

We elected to go in the early evening just at dusk. Normally we would have made this a day trip because the planetarium only allows young children under five to the first show of the day. Later we found out that there were plenty of kids in the later shows. It wasn't quite dark when we got there but dark enough for the view of the city lights to be spectacular, definitely a plus of an evening visit. But boy was it crowded. Despite the crowd, we enjoyed every aspect of the exhibits, the facility and the grounds. I'm not a science buff but there is something about the exploration of the solar system that is fascinating. There is a guided tour available but our daughter is a little too young to be patient enough to listen and observe. There were many things for her to explore and discover on her own. And her imagination was in full gear. In a few years I can see that the guided tour is a great way to go.

The facility is full of interactive exhibits and eye catching photos and visuals. This was enough to keep our little one very busy running from one fascinating thing to the next. We had a blast exploring the entire place from the entry rotunda, with its Foucault Pendulum and Hugo Ballin Murals, to the moon exhibit with a real piece of the moon. The Depths of Space Exhibit was especially fun. The exhibit is a huge subterranean room full of astronomical images, accurately scaled models of planets and cool exhibits illustrating details of each planet.

We ended the evening by walking the many terraces on the various levels of the Observatory. At every turn we enjoyed a sparkling view of the city lights. As we made our way back to the car we all agreed that it would be worthwhile coming back. When we got up the next morning we did just that. This time we headed straight for the Planetarium Theatre to take in the show. We saw the Water is Life show and traveled from beneath the ocean to as far as Saturn and beyond. The images of the night sky were amazing and when they illustrated how bright the starry sky would be without the brightness of the city lights, it made us feel how much we miss the outdoors. We moved through our solar system with crystal clear visual images of outerspace engulfing us as though we were actually in a spaceship. All three of us were amazed. As we turned to travel back to earth we couldn't believe how beautiful our planet looked. It really gives you a perspective of how small we are in comparison to the vastness of the universe. As we travelled toward the earth to return to the Observatory our daughter yelled, "We're going to crash!" She quickly covered her eyes and before she new it the show was over and the lights came back on.

A Sunday morning visit to the Griffith Observatory is well worth it. It was quiet with only a fraction of the number of visitors of the night before. While the nighttime skyline is fantastic, the mid morning view from up there on a clear day is just as breath taking. We relaxed on the front lawn to enjoy our snacks we had brought from home and just enjoyed the environment. It truly is a beautiful place. A must see.

For a few of our favorite astronomy book visit our Amazon store.